


The Issue of Trust

by melody_1026



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Heart-to-Heart, One Shot, Siblings, Trust Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:27:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28774554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melody_1026/pseuds/melody_1026
Summary: Sokka and Katara have a talk about her experience in the catacombs under Ba Sing Se. Set immediately after "The Boiling Rock".
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18





	The Issue of Trust

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender or any of its characters nor do I profit from this work. I’m just having fun.

Dishes clean and put away, Katara heaved a tired sigh as she sat down by the fire pit next to her brother. Sokka had been trying for some time to get the fire going again, but he was struggling.

Sokka acknowledged her and gave a little sigh of his own. “As much as I'm grateful for how cool it feels after the rain, all this wet wood is sure making building this fire a chore. I never should have let it die after dinner."

"How did you get it started before?"

Sokka shrugged, "Zuko helped. He might have to take care of this one too because I've just about given up."

Katara frowned. Since when had they needed _His Royal Highness_ around to build a fire? Aloud, Katara simply said, "I'm sure we can manage without Zuko. Here let me help."

Katara concentrated as she used her bending to remove water from the kindling. Sokka's eyes brightened, "Well, that should work. Thanks!" Eagerly, Sokka went to work with the dry kindling and spark rocks.

"No problem." Soon, a warm fire was crackling in the fire pit. Katara and Sokka sat in comfortable silence side by side for several minutes, then Katara said, "It's kind of nice sitting here, just the two of us. Nothing against any of the others, but after traveling around for so long with just the four of us, it seems a little crowded."

Sokka grabbed a stick and poked at the fire, "Really? Nothing against any of the others?"

Katara visibly stiffened then grumpily rested her chin on her hands. Of course, Sokka had to ruin her good mood. "And here I thought we were going to have a nice sibling moment."

"My thoughts exactly, Katara." Sokka looked around. "For the time being, it's just the two of us. We can speak freely, and I want to talk to you about Zuko."

Katara groaned and looked up at her brother. He had his "no nonsense" look in his eyes. "Fine then. Let's talk."

"Do you trust him?"

"What?" Katara barked out a laugh. What a stupid question. "What do you think?"

"I'm asking an honest question, and I want you to be honest with yourself before you give me an answer. I know you don't _want_ to trust him, and I know you _act_ like you don't like him, but he's been with us for a while now. He has had ample opportunity to harm any one of us if he wanted. If his intention is still to harm or capture Aang, why did Aang ever make it back from the Sun Warrior's Temple? Why would he offer to help me find Dad, risking his own freedom? He's been living, sleeping, and working with us for weeks without any incident. Katara, why is it so hard to believe he has genuinely changed?"

Sokka had not raised his voice. He was not upset with her. He was genuinely curious. He had made some valid points, and it wasn’t as though Katara was blind to the truth of what Sokka said. She knew her reasons, but to explain them to Sokka was another matter. Katara paused to collect her thoughts, then spoke carefully. "You're not wrong, Sokka, but I don't think you understand what I mean when I say I don't trust him. I do believe that he wants to do what’s right. For now, that is."

"So, you don't think it will last?"

"I'm just not sure. You weren't there in the catacombs under Ba Sing Se, Sokka. He wasn't the same guy that had chased us around the world. It was like he was a whole different person. He was more mild, more sensitive, even more vulnerable."

"Yeah, you mentioned that he had talked about his mother."

"I told him that the Fire Nation took mom away from me, and he said that that was something we had in common. He didn't offer any further information, and I didn't press the issue."

"What else did you guys talk about?"

"His scar."

That surprised Sokka, "Really? I've always had the sense that subject was off-limits."

"Generally, I still think it is, but that's what I mean when I say he was vulnerable. I made a comment about picturing his face when I pictured the enemy. It wasn't meant to be a jab at his appearance, but he thought it was. He immediately shied back and put his hand over his scar. He recovered quickly though. He told me how he had thought for so long that his scar marked him and cursed him to chase the avatar. He went on to tell me that he had since realized that he could chose his own path, despite his mark.

“That is when I started to trust him. Knowing that he had the freedom to make that choice--It was like a startling revelation to him, Sokka. It was clear that he was unhappy with his present course. Why else would the choice to be different be so amazing to him? Looking back, I still think he genuinely wanted to change back then. He was right on the brink, so close that I mistakenly thought he had already crossed over to our side.

“But somehow, something pulled him back, and he fell back into his old role with a vengeance. There was no mercy or hesitance in the blows he threw my way. In fact, I felt more ferocity and determination from him than I had ever seen in our previous encounters. I was so hurt, disappointed, and angry. I looked at him straight in the eyes as I blocked his fire and told him that I thought he had changed. He looked straight back at me, told me he had changed, then continued his ruthless attack.

“He was right. He had changed. He was no longer fighting a battle that someone else chose for him. For the first time, he was fighting a battle he had chosen for himself. And by the way he fought that day, I truly believed any hope for change was gone for good."

Katara paused and took a breath before continuing, "You asked me if I trust him. My honest answer? I don't know what to think. I trusted him once, only to have it thrown back in my face. While I know he is sincere in his wishes to make amends for the past, he was just as sincere in his choice back in Ba Sing Se. If his course once clearly set for evil could be changed for good, then couldn't his course now clearly set for good be seduced back to evil? I've had my trust in people betrayed too many times to give it out so blindly anymore. I don't want to be burned again."

The siblings fell into silence for few minutes, then Sokka spoke, "I'm glad you told me all that. I do understand better now why you hesitate to trust him. And I can't say I blame you." Sokka hesitated a moment before continuing, "I do have one more question. I know it's probably just silly big brother paranoia, but the thought has tugged at my mind now and then and I just need to settle my fear. There wasn't any sort of...romantic betrayal, right?"

"What!" Katara jerked her head up and stared at her brother. "What in the world gave you that idea?"

"Hey, I just know that when a teenage boy is alone with a beautiful girl, he can sometimes get funny ideas. I also know that when a strong, good-looking guy like Zuko gets all sensitive and vulnerable, he can be very appealing to a big-hearted young woman. Like you said, I wasn’t there those catacombs. No one was. Anything could have happened."

"Well, you can put your weird big brother worries to rest. Nothing happened between us, so I'm not over here nursing a broken heart. My grudge is strictly platonic."

"That's good, 'cause it would be kind of awkward after all we just went through to rescue Dad if I had to kick his butt now."

The mental image of Sokka pushing Zuko's face in the dirt "defending her honor" made Katara laugh out loud just as Zuko and Aang walked up.

"What's the joke?" Aang asked.

"It's nothing, Aang. We're just having a sibling moment."

**Author's Note:**

> Alright guys, 
> 
> As this is my first ever fanfiction, I would appreciate any feedback you can offer me. Thanks for checking out my little story and I hoped you enjoyed it.


End file.
